Rentokil Initial plc (LON:RTO) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

Rentokil Initial plc (LON:RTO) has earned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the eleven research firms that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat reports. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and seven have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month target price among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is GBX 627.89 ($7.91).

A number of research analysts have commented on RTO shares. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a GBX 670 ($8.45) price objective on shares of Rentokil Initial in a research note on Monday, July 3rd. Barclays increased their price objective on Rentokil Initial from GBX 650 ($8.19) to GBX 700 ($8.82) and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, July 3rd. HSBC reiterated a “hold” rating and issued a GBX 665 ($8.38) target price on shares of Rentokil Initial in a research note on Wednesday, May 17th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on Rentokil Initial from GBX 640 ($8.07) to GBX 740 ($9.33) and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 17th.

Insider Transactions at Rentokil Initial

In related news, insider Sally Johnson acquired 1,563 shares of Rentokil Initial stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 31st. The stock was purchased at an average price of GBX 632 ($7.97) per share, for a total transaction of £9,878.16 ($12,451.99). In other news, insider David Frear acquired 250 shares of Rentokil Initial stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 22nd. The stock was purchased at an average cost of GBX 3,950 ($49.79) per share, with a total value of £9,875 ($12,448.00). Also, insider Sally Johnson bought 1,563 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, July 31st. The shares were purchased at an average price of GBX 632 ($7.97) per share, for a total transaction of £9,878.16 ($12,451.99). Corporate insiders own 1.09% of the company’s stock.

Rentokil Initial Stock Performance

Shares of Rentokil Initial stock opened at GBX 596.80 ($7.52) on Wednesday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is GBX 611.59 and its 200-day simple moving average is GBX 597.71. Rentokil Initial has a 12 month low of GBX 458 ($5.77) and a 12 month high of GBX 663.80 ($8.37). The stock has a market capitalization of £15.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 4,973.33, a PEG ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 0.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 120.62, a current ratio of 1.13 and a quick ratio of 1.76.

Rentokil Initial Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 11th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 3rd will be issued a GBX 2.75 ($0.03) dividend. This represents a yield of 0.43%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 3rd. Rentokil Initial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 6,666.67%.

Rentokil Initial Company Profile

Rentokil Initial plc, together with its subsidiaries, provides route-based services in North America, the United Kingdom, rest of Europe, Asia, the Pacific, and internationally. It offers a range of pest control services for rodents, and flying and crawling insects, as well as other forms of wildlife management for commercial customers.